More than 360.000 euros were spent by departments of the Government of Montenegro from November 2023 to November 2024 on bills for landline phones in offices, as well as mobile phones for employees.
"Vijesti" obtained this information using requests for free access to information through the "Ask the Institutions" application of the Network for the Affirmation of the Non-Governmental Sector (MANS).
The editorial team requested documentation regarding spending by landline and mobile phone operators, and the largest consumer was the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP), which paid 206.660 euros for this type of service during that period.
Travel Danilo Saranovic it also has the most employees - 4.518 officers. Of that number, 886 are employed in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and 3.632 in the Police Directorate.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs responded to additional questions from the editorial staff that they have concluded contracts for the use of mobile telephony and the internet with "all three operators."
"The Ministry of Internal Affairs has concluded contracts for the use of mobile telephony and mobile internet with all three mobile telephony operators. Currently, 2.883 mobile connections, 263 DATA cards (data transfer) and 692 fixed connections are in use...", the Ministry of Internal Affairs said.
According to them, mobile telephony and internet consumption for 2023 amounted to 261.890 euros.
"... And for 2024, 272.334 euros, so that costs increased by 10.444 euros last year. Landline telephony spending for 2023 amounted to 158.147 euros, and for 2024, 174.252 euros, so that costs increased by 16.104 euros in the previous year. It is important to emphasize that costs increased due to the introduction of new services and technologies and the improvement of the work of the Ministry of the Interior and the Police Directorate, and additionally due to activities caused by intensive international cooperation when it comes to specific police activities that required additional capacities for mobile telecommunications services and communication costs at the international level," they said.
Responding to the question of "Vijesti" whether there is a system for controlling the use of official telephones and numbers, the Ministry of Internal Affairs explained that "appropriate packages, arranged by categories, are used that limit consumption for each individual number."
"Packages are allocated with the consent of the competent managers of organizational units, and in accordance with the needs of users in the organizational units. Monthly, upon receipt of invoices, they are checked to monitor consumption and detect any incorrect billing by the operator," said the Ministry of Interior.
Justice spent 11.642 euros, education 15.979
The Ministry of Justice, headed by Bojan Božović, has 84 employees, and their mobile phone bill from November 2023 to November last year amounted to 11.642 euros.
According to the documentation that "Vijesti" has access to, they spent the most in November 2024 - 1.092, and the least last May - 36 euros.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MESI) has 148 employees. The department Anđele Jakšić-Stojanović spent 2023 euros on telephony services from November 2024 to November 15.979.
The Ministry of Finance told "Vijesti" that their department has 267 employees "including the minister and state secretaries." The ministry, which is headed by Novica Vuković According to the documentation, it spent 30.274 euros on fixed and mobile telephony services.
The Ministry of Energy, however, paid only 3.042 euros for the telephone service bill.
"We inform you that the newly formed Ministry of Energy has 2025 employees in January 38, of which 26 have their mobile phone expenses paid. We would like to point out that none of the employees use or own an official phone," they told "Vijesti".
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said that the department, with the Minister Ervin Ibrahimović, has 240 employees. Their cost for mobile telephony services amounted to 32.405 euros.
Culture phoned for 12.567 euros
The Ministry of Culture and Media, headed by Tamara Vujović, in the period from November 2023 to November 2024, spent 12.567 euros on mobile telephony services.
The Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property has 165 employees, and their bill in the observed period amounted to 15.478 euros.
"Regarding official telephones, we inform you that none of the employees of the Ministry of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and State Property use official telephones. For business communication purposes, employees use landlines and e-mail. In addition, 110 employees also use official numbers. The bills for these numbers, which are divided into different packages according to the needs of the work that the employees perform, are paid by the Ministry. The bill for all official numbers for December 2024 was 1.009 euros, and for January 2025 it is 979 euros," the department replied. Slaven Radunović.
The Ministry of Human and Minority Rights has 40 employees, and they spent 6.663 euros on mobile and landline telephony. The department it manages Fatmir Đeka, spent the most in December 2023, 1.756 euros. Their telephone bill for last year was 5.907 euros.
From the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, headed by Filip Radulović, told "Vijesti" that the department has 52 employees. They spent 2023 euros on mobile telephony services in the period from November 1.037 to the same month last year.
"In addition to the administration, employees are assigned to the Port Authority of Bar and the Port Authority of Kotor. The statistics also include employees who perform public functions (the minister, two state secretaries, the secretary of the Ministry, as well as two directors of the Directorate)," said the department.
The Ministry of Transport, managed by Maja Vukićević, allocated 20.776 euros for the mobile phone bill. The departments of regional development and cooperation with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and social welfare spent a total of 4.762 euros.
The Ministry of European Affairs (MEP) spent 7.220 euros on mobile telephony. From the institution it manages Maida Gorcevic, did not answer the editorial staff's additional questions - how many employees they have, whether and how many employees use official phones.
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